The New Girl Effect Video, Even Better Than the First?

Anyone who saw the first Girl Effect video was probably struck by how powerful it was. The message was simple: If we want to tackle world poverty, we need to prioritize the lives (and rights) of girls and women. Well, they're at it again, and this video, called "The Clock Is Ticking," might be even better. It focuses on health and education, and it's worth a watch. (Get out your tissues.)

It premiered two hours ago, at the Clinton Global Initiative summit in New York City, after Hillary Clinton announced that for the first time ever that CGI was adding girls and women to its priority topics. Specifically, she said, CGI would be focusing on providing 100 million safe and clean cookstoves by 2010. For those unfamiliar with how CGI works, it's important to note that when its members make pledges like that, they are very much held to them. Not every goal is met, but many are—these aren't pie-in-the-sky promises; they're considered realistic and measurable goals to which its members are accountable.

After Clinton, then the EPA's Lisa Jackson took the stage reiterating that women around the world need to be able to cook a meal in a way that doesn't cause them harm. It's such a simple idea, and yet 2 million people die every year because of health problems related to inhaling the smoke from unclean cookstoves—to say nothing of the greenhouse gasses they emit.